The article briefly summarises main devlopments in Norwegian-Russian bilateral contacts after the Soviet collapse. The period from 1991 to 2014 is divided into three phases; The state of emergency (1992-1999), the decade of reaction (2000-2012), and the most recent phase, which is seen as a return to the norm (2012-2014). Throughout the 1990s, the bilateral relationship was characterised by unprecedented interaction between the two states in the sense that Norway held a defining role. After Vladimir Putin's coming to power, Russia's relationship to Western countries underwent, first gradually then more abruptly, a reactionary process. No longer was input from Western democracies, including Norway, desired. From 2012, when Putin resumed his presidency, Russia's foreign policy has become increasingly assertive and, seen in a longer historical perspective, also far closer to traditional Russian political aims. It is with this perspective in mind the author argues that a new normalcy between Russia and Norway is in the process of being forged.